Final: Royals 7, Red Sox 3

Darwinzon Hernandez allowed four runs in the seventh, turning what had been a tie game into a big lead for the Kansas City Royals in a 7-3 defeat of the Red Sox.

The Sox had battled back in the top of the seventh on a run-scoring single from Kevin Plawecki to pull even at 3-3.

But the first four hitters in the home half of the inning all reached and scored -- capped by a three-run homer by Salvador Perez -- against Hernandez, who was called up from Worcester earlier in the day.

The Sox had just six hits in their second straight loss, which dropped back under .500 for the season.

WHO: Red Sox (53-53) vs. Kansas City Royals (41-64)
WHEN: 8:10 p.m.
WHERE: Kauffman Stadium
STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Nick Pivetta (8-8, 4.47) vs. LHP Kris Bubic (2-6, 5.45)
TV/RADIO: NESN; WEEI-FM 93.7

LINEUPS

RED SOX

Davis RF
Pham LF
Devers 3B
Bogaerts SS
Martinez DH
Hosmer 1B
Arroyo 2B
Plawecki C
Duran CF

ROYALS

Melendez LF
Witt Jr. 3B
Perez C
Pasquantino DH
Dozier 1B
Massey 2B
Taylor CF
Eaton RF
Lopez SS

WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox have won 3 of their last 4 games and are 4-3 in their last 7. The Sox won their last series, a 3-game set against the Astros, to snap a 9-series winless streak (0-7-2)... Their last series win had been 6/24-26 at CLE.  Tonight marks the 1st of 7 meetings this season between the Red Sox and Royals...After the 4-game series this weekend, they will play 3 games at Fenway Park from Friday-Sunday, 9/16-18. The Sox and Royals entered the 2018 season tied at 235-235 in the all-time series, which began in 1969... The Sox have since won 15 of 19 games against KC. Since the start of 2018, the Sox are 7-2 (.778) at Kauffman Stadium...That’s the 2nd-best record of any team here over that span (SEA: 8-2, .800). ...The Red Sox have won 13 of their last 17 games in which their opponent starts a LHP (17-8 in 2022)...They are scheduled to face a left-handed starter tonight (Bubic) and Saturday (Lynch). Against LHP, the Sox rank 3rd in the AL in AVG (.263) and 2nd in OBP (.334). Xander Bogaerts (.489) and J.D. Martinez (.453) rank 1st and 4th in the AL in OBP against LHP. ....The Red Sox have allowed 2 runs or fewer in 3 of their last 4 games, after doing so in 3 of their previous 23... In that span, Sox relievers have allowed 2 runs over 14.2 IP. ...The Red Sox have come from behind in each of their last 4 wins and 7 of their last 8. The Red Sox have won each of their last 6 extra-inning games, after losing each of their first 6. ...The Sox’ series win at HOU snapped a streak of 4 consecutive series losses on the road...Overall, they are 8-8-1 in road series and 27-26 in road games. The Sox’ 3.78 road ERA ranks 8th in the majors. ...The Red Sox are in the midst of playing 16 consecutive games against teams outside their division: CLE (2-2), MIL (1-2), HOU (2-1), KC (4 G), and ATL (2 G). Beginning 8/11 against the Orioles, 35 of the Red Sox’ final 50 games are against AL East opponents: BAL (11), NYY (9), TB (9), and TOR (6). The Sox are 0-11-1 in series against AL East teams but 13-4-4 in series against all other teams. ....The Red Sox are opening the 2nd half with a stretch of 17 consecutive days with a game from 7/22-8/7 (5-8 so far), matching their longest streak of the season...They also closed the 1st half with a stretch of 17 consecutive days with a game from 7/1-17. ...The Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association today named Rafael Devers as the Red Sox winner of the 2022 Heart and Hustle Award. The Heart and Hustle Award recognizes one player on each MLB team who demonstrates a passion for the game and best embodies its values, spirit, and traditions. Devers has earned the Heart and Hustle Award in each of the last 3 seasons it was presented ...Xander Bogaerts hit his 150th career home run yesterday in Houston...He is on the cusp of becoming just the 8th player to record 150+ HR and 300+ doubles with the Red Sox (150 HR, 298 doubles entering today). Only 24 players in MLB history have recorded 150+ HR and 300+ doubles prior to turning 30 years old, including 1 shortstop (Alex Rodriguez) and 1 Red Sox player (Carl Yastrzemski)...Bogaerts turns 30 on 10/1.  The Red Sox are the only team in the majors to have 3 qualified hitters with at least a .350 OBP and .450 SLG: Rafael Devers (.376/.605), Xander Bogaerts (.387/.460), and J.D. Martinez (.350/.454). The Sox feature 6 players with 40+ RBI, tied for 2ndmost in the majors behind only TOR (8). ... Yesterday concluded the Sox’ stretch of 27 consecutive games (7/4-8/3) against teams that entered today with at least a .500 record: NYY (7), TB (7), CLE (4), HOU (3), MIL (3), and TOR (3).

NOTES:

* The Red Sox made a handful of moves pre-game. After releasing Jackie Bradley Jr. earlier in the day, the Sox optioned Kaleb Ort to Worcester and placed RHP Brayan Bello on the IL. To take the roster spots, the So activated Eric Hosmer and RHP Matt Barnes, while recalling LHP Darwinzon Hernandez.